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The Peasants on Louis XIV

Uploaded by sunzzip102 on Jan 04, 2008

This is in the form of an opening statement for a debate, and outlined arguments against the peasant class.

Opening Statements

Gentleman, after Cardinal Mazarin died in 1661, Louis XIV declared that henceforth he would rule France without a chief minister, something no French king had done in living memory. He intends to rule as an absolute monarch, believing that his power as king is derived from God and that he is responsible to God alone. There we see one lie among many, however there is one universal truth among all rulers. He is obliged to rule for the benefit of his people. This is something that our all too powerful king has failed to do. Speaking on behalf of the peasant class, I hope that you consider our issues with Louis XIV with empathy for our financial situation. With the more prosperous classes being exempt from taxation, France’s tax burden falls heavily on us, we who are the least able to pay. It’s a question of equity. Why should the peasant class be solely responsible for the economy of France? Why is it solely us who will pay for the Palace of Versailles’ many expensive paintings and fine food? To make matters worse, these remorseless taxes could not have been called for at a worse time. Other hardships plague us at the moment such as poor harvests, the persistent deflation of our currency, and the unpredictably changing price of grain. Gentleman, I pray that you will show some compassion in this matter and consider extensive tax reform. The peasant class also would like to formally complain about our newly hired controller general of finances, Jean-Baptiste Colbert. Some of this may come as news to some of you, but as part of his elaborate goal of French mercantilism, Colbert plans to make Canada, rich in untapped minerals and pristine agricultural land, part of an extensive French empire. It’s recently come to my attention that Colbert intends on gathering thousands of peasants and forcefully shipping them to Canada to populate the province of Quebec. To put it mildly, this is outrageous. It’s unfair. How can you sit idly and allow one man the ability to move thousands people around the world as though we were mere chess pieces on a board? There’s only one of him,...